Explore the beautiful Lake and Mountains

Where better to spend your next holiday than amongst the beautiful lakes and mountains of Cumbria?

Cumbria is the most North-Western County in England, bordering Scotland. It consists of six Districts (Allerdale, Barrow-in-Furness, Carlisle, Copeland, Eden and South Lakeland), and is one of the most sparsely populated Counties in the UK.

Cumbria is formed from the old counties of Cumberland, Westmorland, part of North Lancashire, and part of North Yorkshire, and is now England’s second largest County in size. You can visit the infamous Lake District National Park - which is 30-miles across, and is home to England’s highest mountains, (with four over 3000 ft), in addition to some of England's biggest lakes. Also within Cumbria is a small part of the famous Yorkshire Dales.

It's a little known fact, that Stan Laurel, (of "Laurel and Hardy"), was born in Cumbria, in the town of Ulverston in 1890. Many famous historical icons have connections with Cumbria or the Lake District, either because they were born there, or some of their most memorable works were done there. These include Beatrix Potter, Arthur Ransome (best known for his series of "Swallows and Amazons" children's books), the poet William Wordsworth, L.S. Lowry and even Fletcher Christian, who led the crew's revolt on board "The Bounty."

The Lake District is the largest National Park in England, and one of the most popular. It contains more than 150 high peaks, with 4 over 3000 feet, (the only mountains in England), including England's highest mountain, Scafell Pike which is a massive 3206 feet tall.

It’s an odd fact for an area named after its many great lakes, but there is only one official lake in the Lakelands: Bassenthwaite Lake. Every other stretch of water in the Lake District is actually classed as a water, tarn or mere. Windermere is the largest natural expanse of water in England, stretching over 11 miles, with Wastwater being the deepest in England at nearly 80 metres deep and is 3 miles long and over half a mile wide.

  

Here's just a handful of ideas to plan into your holiday:

• Lakeland Maze Farm Park: Go visit Winston the donkey at this working farm, along with his friends the ferrets, llamas, alpacas, goats, horses or get yourself lost in the maize maze

• Explore a magical world where all 23 enchanting tales are brought to life at The World of Beatrix Potter visitor centre

• At the Lakes Aquarium you can visit creatures from the lakes of the world, along with otters and diving ducks through to sharks and rays and even marmoset monkeys

• With over several hundred animals, a day out at the Lake District Wildlife Park will be a busy one!

• Go & see the working mill at Little Salkeld Watermill, right alongside the River Eden.

• The Safari Zoo is the only zoo in Britain to hold both Amur and Sumatran Tigers, the biggest and smallest tigers left in the world and is the Lake District’s only zoological park, which is recognised as one of Europe’s leading conservation zoos

• The Lakeland Wildlife Oasis is half zoo/half museum and is a unique look-and-learn centre, which mixes interactive ‘hands-on’ exhibits and exotic wildlife

• Close to Lake Ullswater, The Alpaca Centre, set in rolling countryside, is a beautiful place to see alpacas and a chance to discover so much more… The Alpaca Centre is the only one of its type in Europe 

• Visit the Lakeland Bird of Prey Centre, situated 1/4 mile from the entrance of Lowther Castle, you can see over 150 falcons, hawks, eagles, buzzards and owls from both this country and abroad.

• Follow the path of pencil making from the reign of Elizabeth l through to the present day at the Pencil Museum in Keswick.

• Go for a cruise on either one of the two 19th Century steamers, now converted to oil, cruising on Lake Ullswater.

• Take a steam train ride through the lake and river scenes of the Leven Valley from the Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway .

• The Lakeland Motor Museum holds over 30,000 road transport exhibits.

• The Rum Story (we see the adult's ears prick up at this one...) is set in the original 1785 shop, courtyards, cellars and bonded warehouses of the Jefferson family (yes there are "tasters" available!)

• Take a tour at the Honister Slate Mine, which shows the current workings of the mine and how a mixture of modern and traditional methods is still working to extract the slate, which was forming some 400 million years before even the dinosaurs were about!  

So - now you have a few ideas of your Holiday-Days-Out...